{"id":534340,"date":"2026-03-13T19:37:13","date_gmt":"2026-03-13T19:37:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/534340\/"},"modified":"2026-03-13T19:37:13","modified_gmt":"2026-03-13T19:37:13","slug":"is-the-android-we-once-knew-slowly-getting-eroded-video","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/534340\/","title":{"rendered":"Is the Android we once knew slowly getting eroded? [Video]"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Android is in a strange place at the moment; it\u2019s arguably stronger than ever, but feels further away from the platform that launched almost 20 years ago. What changed?<\/p>\n

The old Android landscape almost felt like the wild west. A platform where anything goes, any form factor could be made, wacky things were going on, but lately, it feels like the wild west is being fenced in, paved over, and turned into a sterile retail park that looks suspiciously like what existed over on Apple\u2019s land. It begs a pretty heavy question: Is Android actually losing its soul?<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

For more video content, subscribe to 9to5Google on YouTube.<\/a><\/p>\n

Copying and converging design principles<\/p>\n

The most obvious sign that something is shifting is not only in the hardware but, more recently, in software design.<\/p>\n

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For a long time, Android brands took pride in being different. We\u2019ve had wacky shapes, experimental features, and software skins that looked nothing like what Apple was doing. But look at the latest crop of updates in particular. We\u2019re seeing an \u201ciOS-lite\u201d design language proliferating<\/a> and becoming the new standard.<\/p>\n

I will say that hardware design isn\u2019t as much of an issue for most Android makers now, but there are brands that still favor Apple traits, or at least replicate the iPhone wherever possible. Google has done it, Oppo has done it, Honor has done it, and even Samsung isn\u2019t safe from a little copying of Apple\u2019s design principles or material finishes.<\/p>\n

While that\u2019s a complaint, it\u2019s true that flat rails and rounded corners make for better usability in most cases. Remixing the design and shape has made for an exponentially better-feeling slab, sure, but it\u2019s yet another prime example of refinement over redefinement. There are only so many ways you can make a phone when it\u2019s mostly screen with a camera slapped on the back.<\/p>\n

\"\"OxygenOS adopts Apple-like UI<\/p>\n

\"\"Apple\u2019s Liquid Glass is bleeding into Android<\/p>\n

My biggest personal gripe is the U-turn from practically all third-party Android makers on software skins. While there have always been some hangovers, it feels that many who used to celebrate Material Design and Google\u2019s specific aesthetic are leaning heavily back into iOS-like traits.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re seeing more blur effects, similar notification tray layouts, and a general move toward a \u201crefined\u201d look that feels less like Android and more like a copy of Cupertino\u2019s homework.\u00a0 The most egregious copycats of Liquid Glass elements almost throw out all of the good work done in recent years, chasing an objectively bad software design trend.<\/p>\n

Google is obviously pushing to convert iPhone people over to Pixel by making the hardware feel familiar to make that switch easy and painless. If Google is pushing to convert iPhone people over to Pixel, it does make sense to have that familiar feel<\/a>, but while that\u2019s smart business, it feels like we\u2019re losing that bit of \u201cweirdness\u201d that made Android special in the first place. To Google\u2019s credit, Material 3 Expressive<\/a> is still one of the most unique experiences on mobile \u2013 and long may it continue.<\/p>\n

A shrinking playing field with fewer players<\/p>\n

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Then there\u2019s the issue of the players leaving the space. In my mind \u2013 maybe from someone who has been in the industry for a long time now \u2013 the Android buying landscape used to be crowded and chaotic in a fantastic way.<\/p>\n

Now, in many markets around the globe \u2013 with a few exceptions \u2013 there are really only two big players: Samsung and Apple. When you look at the data, Samsung absolutely dominates the Android space, accounting for almost 1 in 4 Android phones sold<\/a>. But we know that one of the biggest enemies of progress is complacency.<\/p>\n

Personally, I think that without Huawei, we\u2019ve seen Samsung settle a lot more without a direct competitor<\/a> in its weight class to truly keep the company on its toes. At one point in late 2020, before the bans really kicked in, Huawei briefly shipped more handsets than Samsung.\u00a0<\/p>\n

So, since then, it feels like Samsung hasn\u2019t really had a true competitor to effectively force the company to innovate or do things to differentiate itself on a more regular basis. There are exceptions to that generalisation, but for the most part, the Korean brand is slower to move now.\u00a0<\/p>\n

At the risk of yet more hyperbole, I think when the market consolidates into just a couple of \u201csafe\u201d options, the soul of the platform sort of starts to wither, or at least the driving force for innovation is diminished. It\u2019s like the UK high street being taken over by the same three coffee chains; you lose the character that made going out for a coffee even worth it. It feels like everything is just swill with the label changed.<\/p>\n

I know, I know, that is harsh, given we do get a gem once in a while, but those are few and far between. It\u2019s not often an Android phone blows most people away. However, some of that is due to how competent most products are today. The threshold for what will \u201cwow\u201d is way higher. So in some ways it\u2019s not an indictment of what we have now, more of where we have come from.<\/p>\n

The end of \u201ctinkering\u201d with our phones<\/p>\n

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\"lineageos<\/p>\n

There are fewer reasons to mess around with our phones or deviate from the \u201cstock\u201d experience now for various reasons. That said, one key component that still works incredibly well has been under threat as of late.<\/p>\n

Due to a number of forces at play, we are seeing a slow but steady diminishing of sideloading, which feels to many like an attack on the \u201copen\u201d nature of the OS. For the longest time, the ability to just grab an APK and install whatever you wanted has been a hallmark of Android. <\/p>\n

To me, it has always felt like the ultimate \u201cit\u2019s my device\u201d feature. I can install third-party stores, get amazing open source apps, or even get app updates before they roll out via the Play Store. But under the guise of security, it\u2019s becoming harder and more \u201cscary\u201d for the average user to do this<\/a>.<\/p>\n

It feels like Google is adding more hurdles and warnings that make sideloading feel like a \u201cnefarious\u201d shortcut<\/a> rather than something that, in most cases, is absolutely fine despite some risks. It feels a bit like being told you can\u2019t tinker with your own car engine because the manufacturer has decided to bolt the bonnet or hood shut for your own safety.<\/p>\n

Despite all of this, Google says that sideloading isn\u2019t \u201cgoing anywhere.\u201d Instead, the company is \u201cmaking sideloading safer.\u201d The jury is still out on this, but it\u2019s obvious that the messaging needs to be clearer, given the outcry over changes set to be made in future Android releases.<\/p>\n

Compounding this is the fact that custom ROMs are losing access to key components of AOSP in a timely manner.<\/a> The enthusiast community, which literally built the \u201ctrue soul\u201d<\/a> of Android in the early days, is being sidelined.<\/p>\n

As Google moves more and more features out of the open-source base and into proprietary Google Play Services, the \u201cOpen\u201d in Android Open Source Project feels like it\u2019s being written in a smaller and smaller font. We\u2019re moving away from the original software paradigm, and the freedom to truly own your software is being traded for a more controlled, \u201ccurated\u201d experience.<\/p>\n

Yes, in most cases, this means things look and work nicer, but is that a justification for some of these changes? Again, the jury is out.<\/p>\n

Is AI becoming a problem for the \u201cold\u201d Android?<\/p>\n

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And then there\u2019s the elephant in the room: AI. It is taking over everything, and although many aspects are great, I feel like it\u2019s a tool that you can use a bit, like the Pen tool in Photoshop, but it feels like AI is being used to paper over some pretty cracks in the mobile experience.<\/p>\n

In some ways, this shift to latch on to AI makes a lot of sense.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s face it, your phone now, at its core, probably doesn\u2019t do much differently than say, 7 or 8 years ago. Unless you have a foldable phone\u2014 and fair play to you if you do \u2014 you probably run the same suite of applications you have had since day one: Chrome, Instagram, YouTube, maybe the odd game, and some messaging apps; I would wager I\u2019m not too far off what 99.9% of people do day-to-day. The app paradigm hasn\u2019t shifted, and the wholesale Android functionality changes that were common year over year have long since been a thing of the past.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s highly likely that because hardware and software innovation have slowed down drastically, AI is being shoehorned into every area as a way to entice people to upgrade their phones.<\/p>\n

On the Pixel, this is especially pronounced. Marketing has shifted to emphasize Gemini over the actual things that make Google phones compelling. Rightly or wrongly, Android isn\u2019t really being used as a selling point anymore, despite some substantial visual changes brought about by the Material 3 Expressive overhaul.<\/p>\n

Gemini\u2019s ability to be ubiquitous and deeply integrated into the tools we use on a daily basis is Google\u2019s big play for dominance. They have the cash and runway to effectively bleed the competition dry. But as we trade the unique, customizable, and open nature of Android for a more \u201cintegrated\u201d and \u201cintelligent\u201d experience that looks and feels like everything else, I can\u2019t help but wonder if the trade-off is worth it.<\/p>\n

However, in the context of a smartphone, yes, some things are great, like screenshot organisation, call screening, live translations, but beyond that, it often feels like bloatware with a fancy new name.<\/p>\n

A mature, maybe muted future for Android<\/p>\n

\"android\"<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not saying Android is dead \u2014 far from it.<\/p>\n

That said, in the early days, the \u201csoul\u201d of Android was always about being the alternative, the tinkerer\u2019s dream, and visually distinct from iOS. It was the platform that did things differently.<\/p>\n

As it becomes more \u201cubiquitous\u201d and \u201cintegrated,\u201d it runs the risk of becoming just another \u201csafe\u201d utility, about as exciting as a new brand of dishwasher. Whether you like it or not, the future is AI-driven, and maybe the tech giants realise they might need each other to stay at the top of the mountain. You can see this with Apple partnering with Gemini,<\/a> more cross-platform functionality, and Cupertino at least not inhibiting Google like in years prior.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s an interesting time, and while there are bright sparks in the platform I dearly love, I\u2019m curious to see if the \u201cgreen bubble\u201d will eventually just become a slightly different shade of blue.<\/p>\n

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